Welcome to Geo-UAV#
Teaching Geoscientific drone-based data acquisition#
This course is designed for students, as well as scientific and technical staff who are interested in learning or enhancing their skills in using UAV-based geoscientific data acquisition in the field.
About Geo-UAV#
Open access
The Geo-UAV course is open for everyone to follow online. It is aimed as an open-source reference work for the UAV-based data acquisition in the field.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, also known as UAVs, are being used extensively for recreational, commercial, academic, and government purposes. They are particularly useful in geosciences to survey large areas accurately and efficiently. This course offers guidelines on how to acquire scientifically publishable data using UAVs in a safe and legal manner.
The reference work is primarily developed as a class-room aid. Best practices and tutorials are based on the experience acquired as part of the Svalbox project, which aims to digitize as many outcrops as possible in Svalbard (Norwegian Arctic).
Course content#
Geo-UAV course is split in several sessions, consisting of interactive lectures walkthroughs, and exercises.
Learning outcomes#
After taking the Geo-UAV course, the participant has demonstrated comprehensive knowledge and understanding of UAV-based data acquisition principles. These include:
✔️ Planning, preparation and execution for data acquisition missions
✔️ UAV flight operations and safety protocols
✔️ Adherence to safety guidelines and regulatory requirements
✔️ Data acquisition techniques and flight patterns
✔️ UAV multirotor flying experience
Project status#
Geo-UAV is still in development, with additional tutorials and how-tos added continously to keep the work up-to-date with recent developments and evolving best practices.
Contribute or improve the resource#
Notice some unclear sections? A typo in the text? Want to contribute in one of the course sessions? Get in touch and let’s make thing happen!
Fig. 1 This page uses Github as a backbone. All it takes is a Github account, which even comes with student benefits. Once connected, feel free to open an issue as per the above - whether suggesting improvements or highlighting bugs.#
Funding and Support#
The developement of Geo-AUV is funded by iEarth, a Norwegian Center of Excellence for Integrated Earth Science Education.
The Geo-UAV implements technical knowhow acquired through The Svalbox Project.
UNIS supports Geo-UAV by providing necessary technical and logistical assistance.
NFiP financially supports Geo-UAV development and provided travel stipends for course participants.
Acknowledgements and licensing#
Geo-UAV is implemented through Jupyter Book and the Executable Book Project. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.